Loss
by John Silver fan
Summary: Prolouge to 'Hurt'.
1. Chapter 1

Casey quickened his pace, running up the driveway of Master Finn's house, when he realized that he was smelling blood, a lot of blood. He rushed into the house, and his heart skipped a beat.

Master Finn lay face down in a pool of blood, his blood.

"Master Finn!"

He rushed over to him and gently turned him over onto his back, supporting his head with his hand.

The Shark Master's eyes opened weakly, revealing unbearable pain in his chocolate brown eyes.

Casey's gaze went to the blood stain on his shirt, the darkest spot over his stomach. His horror increased when he realized that he was still bleeding. He called 911 and told them what he knew and Master Finn's address.

After he hung up he called Flit and told him to get Theo, Lily, Fran, and Domonic from their date and to contact Jarrod and Camille at the Pai Zhuq Academy then come to Master Finn's right away.

He hung up again and focused his attention on his second Master. He pulled off his jacket and carefully wrapped around the wound. He supported Master Finn's head again and knew he had to do his best to keep him alive.

"Hang on, Master Finn. Help's coming," he said.

The Shark Master coughed, coughing up blood.

"Oh, man."

The Red Ranger fought back the panic rising within him as well as the food he had eaten that threatened to come back up. He kept talking to the older man, kept telling him to stay awake, to keep looking at him. He was getting covered with blood, but he didn't care. That was the least of his problems.

Relief and hope came to him when he heard an ambluance and saw the flashing lights when he turned slightly, looking out the window.

"They're almost here, Master Finn. Just hang in there."

There was no response from the older Master.

"Master Finn?"

There was still no response.

The icy hand of fear gripping him, Casey felt the Shark Master's pulse.

Lily, Theo, Domonic, Fran, Flit, Jarrod, and Camille reached Master Finn's house and saw an ambluance, some police cars, paramedics, and police officers there. When they got close enough they saw Casey sitting on the fence, his arms and front of his torso covered in blood, his face stunned and sad.

"Casey?" Jarrod said.

He turned to them and slipped down from the fence as they came over.

"Master Finn?"

Casey looked at Lily sadly then look over as two paramedics came by with a body bag on a stretcher.

"Wait," Jarrod said.

They stopped.

"Look if you must," said one.

The teens, except for Casey, and Flit moved closer to the stretcher.

The paramedic at the head opened the top, revealing the face of the person.

Camille and Lily barely held back their cries as they covered their mouths, and the boys' faces turned white.


	2. Telling RJ

They returned to Jungle Karma Pizza to find RJ waiting for them.

"RJ? What are you doing back so soon? You weren't suppose to be back for another week."

"I missed you guys and got bored so I came home. You guys look awful, is everything okay?"

They moved aside so Casey was in view of the Wolf Master.

"Casey?! Oh, man!"

RJ rushed to the Tiger Master.

"It's not mine," Casey choked.

He rushed up to the loft before RJ could say a word.

"If it's not his blood, then whose blood is it?" RJ asked, though he wasn't really sure he wanted to know.

Flit and teens exchanged glances.

"Guys? What aren't you telling me?"

Jarrod stepped forward.

"We're sorry, RJ?"

"For what?"

The lion cub sighed.

"The blood all over Casey is your dad's."

RJ's face paled.

"What?"

Lily stepped forward.

"He's gone, RJ. Someone stabbed him in the stomach."

"Casey was with him when he died," Jarrod added.

RJ's face paled even more.

"He... he's..."

The Wolf Master couldn't bring himself to finish his question as everything inside him denied it.

His friends nodded.

"Where is he?" he managed to ask as tears came to his eyes.

Domonic drove him to where Master Finn's body was being kept.

They were led to where his body was.

"Are you sure you want to see him?" the doctor asked RJ.

The Wolf Master nodded, thought truthfully he didn't really want to.

The doctor pulled the sheet back far enough to reveal the man's face, and everything inside RJ screamed in denial and sorrow as his heart shattered as he looked down at his father's pale, lifeless face.

His own face turned almost as white as Domonic's Pai Zhuq uniform.

The Rhino Ranger put his arm around his friend and led him back to the van. The drive back to JKP was filled with silence.

RJ felt completely numb.

His father was dead, murdered, and he hadn't been there to help him.


	3. Master Swoop Tells a Bit of the Past

Over the next two weeks RJ withdrew from everyone and everything. When he entered the kitchen to get something to eat or drink, he was silent, pale, his expression blank, and his once bright, green eyes dull and lifeless. He seemed more like a ghost than a person.

His friends tried to get through to him but failed every time.

Finally they decided to confide in one of the remaining older Masters.

Master Phant was visiting relatives, so they went to Master Swoop.

The Bat Master welcomed them as warmly as he could after he had learned of Master Finn's murder, and they told him about RJ.

"This is a hard time and painful loss for all of us, but it hurts RJ the most."

"We know that. Master Finn was his father," Jarrod said.

The Bat Master sat down on the grass, and the others did the same.

"Finn was more than just RJ's father. RJ's mother died when he was only a few months old, Finn was all he ever had. He was RJ's father, of course, but he was also more than that."

This confused the group.

"What do you mean?" Flit asked.

"Finn was RJ's source of comfort and safety, his guardian angel on earth you might say. As a child, RJ adored Finn as Finn adored him. RJ depended on Finn more than a child would depend on both their parents. Whenever he couldn't find Finn, he panicked."

Flit and teens listened with interest now.

"The time of RJ's greatest dependancy, besides when he was a baby, happened when he was ten. He was playing catch with a friend, and the ball rolled out into the road."

The group had a feeling they knew what was coming.

"RJ went to get it just as a car came flying around the corner. He was hit and his legs runover."

They listened in silence, wanting to hear more.

"He was taken to the hospital, and doctors told us that he was paralyzed from the waist down."

Flit and teens gasped softly.

A ghost of a smile played about Master Swoop's lips.

"But good old Finn, God rest his soul, wouldn't believe it. When he was able to take RJ home, he worked with him to get feeling and control back in his lower body. In two years, RJ's lower body was a good as new."

"Wow," Flit couldn't help but say.

The other nodded in agreement.

"During those two years, RJ's dependancy on Finn was greater than it had been in years. The poor boy lost hope very early on, and that was the first time Finn had ever been stern with him. It hurt him emotionally, which Finn regretted, but he assured him that it was for his own good. RJ kept his hope after that, but the bond between him and Finn would never be the same."

The brief pause.

"Finn had sheltered RJ because he feared losing him, but in sheltering him, Finn had only weakened his spirit. When RJ came to me, after standing up to Finn for the first time, he lost hope very quickly and easily. I had to undo ten years of being sheltered from the world to reach the true him. I don't blame Finn for doing what he did in his desire to protect RJ, but that's why RJ's taking this as hard as he is. Even now, any embrace from Finn made RJ feel as though nothing back could happen to him, but now he'll never have that again. He'll never hear Finn's voice soothe, comfort, or praise him, he'll never hear his laughter or see his smile to let him know eveything it all right, he'll never be able to look into his eyes and see the warmth, love, and pride Finn had towards him. That knowledge is tearing him apart, and there's nothing we can do about it."

"What?! You're just going to give up on him?!" Jarrod exclaimed, leaping to his feet.

"No. There's nothing _we_ can do about for the only one that break through this is RJ himself. It's out of our hands, so we just have to trust RJ and have faith."


	4. Always With You

"RJ."

RJ woke with a start and switched on the light on his nightstand to find a cloaked figure beside his bed.

"Who... who are you?"

"Is that any way to greet..."

The person pulled off the cloak.

"... your father?"

RJ stared in shock and disbelief.

"D-dad?"

Master Finn smiled.

"Hello, son."

RJ leaped to his feet and threw his arms around his father.

"Oh, Dad."

Master Finn hugged his son back.

"Everyone's really worried about you. You need to snap out of it."

"Dad, I need you."

The Shark Master pulled back.

"No, you don't, RJ. You haven't needed me for a few years now, and besides, you have your friends now."

"But, Dad,..."

His father stopped him.

"RJ, you don't need me to protect you anymore. You've already shown me on several occasions that you can take care of yourself, and you have your friends with you. You don't need me anymore."

"Yes, I do."

Master Finn shook his head.

"No, you don't. You've been holding your own for a few years now, proving that you don't need me anymore."

"But,..."

The Shark Master stopped his son once again.

"RJ, my time is up, and you need to stay strong, hold your head up and live your life to its fullest. You're young and have the hope of a bright future, but only if you believe it and seek it."

The Wolf Master sighed.

"You're right, Dad. It just... hurts."

"I know, son. I know. It's going to hurt, but over time the pain will lessen. It'll be hard at first, but your friends will be there for you through it all."

RJ looked into his father's warm, chocolate brown eyes and sighed again.

"All right."

Master Finn smiled.

"Get some sleep, you need it."

RJ hugged his father one last time then got back in bed.

The last thing he heard before falling asleep was his father whispering softly by his ear, "I'm always with you."


End file.
